WorldChina’s ‘Ice Silk Road’ opens new Arctic route between Asia and Europe

China is launching an Arctic trade corridor known as the “Ice Silk Road,” stretching about 5,500km along Russia’s Northern Sea Route. It links eastern Chinese export hubs with ports in the UK, Netherlands, Germany and Poland in roughly 20 days, half the Suez transit time. Russia’s Rosatom controls navigation, while permits, icebreaker escorts, Western sanctions and climate change create uncertainty.